The Wedding of a Lifetime
by Meggie.starxx
Summary: The percabeth wedding, with gods disguised and Percy and Annabeth ready to walk down the aisle, what could go wrong? Misplaced angst? Pipers dumb idea of high heels at a beach wedding? A very late son of Hades? Perhaps a few lost monsters who need reminding of where Tarturus is.
1. The Ceremony

**Just one of the other thousand Percabeth wedding oneshots. Enjoy!**

**Actually, not entirely sure this is a oneshot, as I look at it from different points of view and change scene a lot. And it could be two chapters if you stretched it. Whatever. Enjoy.**

**Disclaimer: If I owned Percy Jackson, I can assure you that House of Hades would be coming out a hell of a lot earlier than it is. All rights and characters got to Rick Riordan.**

Percy looked carefully into the mirror. His suit was new, a gift from his dad. It had buttons shaped like sea shells and fabric that smelt like the sea. Percy straightened his tie for the fiftieth time when a knock on his door announced the arrival of his best man and his groomsman.

If Percy had ever thought choosing the positions was going to be hard, he was wrong. After the obvious choice of Grover for Best man, Tyson just clicked. Percy attempted a grin when he saw them, but it must have seemed more like a grimace because Tyson and Grovers faces grew wary. Well, Grovers face grew wary, Tyson just seemed to want to go over to where Percy was keeping all his emergency pizza, in case all the gourmet was as gross as Leo had explained.

"What's wrong?" Grover asked.

"Uh," Percy thought of something quickly. "Just hoping you aren't planning on serenading us with 'So Yesterday'. I think that would officially ruin everything." Percy tried to smile again but he couldn't. He was so angry with himself. This was supposed to be the best day of his life, and he was _sad_. He didn't even want to _think_ about what Annabeth would think if she could read his thoughts. She would be devastated.

Grover wasted no time in feigning insult. "Seriously man, what's up?"

Percy sighed and pushed his hand through his hair. His newly styled style suddenly became a lot messier. "I'm scared," he admitted.

"What?" Tyson asked, turning around with an incredulous look on his face. "Percy is scared?"

Percy knew what he meant. He was 21, had defeated giants and monsters and _Gaea _for the gods sake, and was scared of _this._

"Why?" Grover asked. Percy was sure he was thinking of Juniper. He had proposed to her in early March that year. Percy had never seen him more excited for anything in the world. Not even Enchilada day when they went to Yancy together, all those years ago.

"I don't even know," Percy sat down and buried his head in his hands. He loved Annabeth, he loved her more than anything in the world. She was his life now, their love was everything he had been told was rare and precious. The thought of not marrying her, of someone else saying 'I do', was almost too painful for him to imagine.

"Are you scared of being happy?" Tyson asked quietly. Percy looked up at his brother. He took back every thought he had ever made about him being slow or dumb. His brother was the smartest person in the world.

"What if I mess it up? What if I use it all up in the first few years?" Percy asked, looking around at his two friends desperately.

"You won't," Grover smiled, heading out the door. "And hurry up, we're supposed to be there in 10 minutes."

"How long does it take to drive?" Percy asked, following him.

"Di Immortales!" Grover hissed when he remembered, doubling his speed. "Eight minutes! On a _good _day!"

"Then why drive?" Percy asked his friend, grinning and stopping out the front of his apartment. He closed his eyes, and called Blackjack. Percy knew, even if he wasn't aware of it, that this was going to be the best decision of his life.

Annabeth studied her reflection in the mirror. The dress she'd picked out was beautiful. It was an off white that wrapped around her body, tightening at the waist and releasing into a skirt at the bottom. It fell down to the floor. Her veil was nothing special. A simple sheet of white mesh that attached itself to her hair that was styled in a simple yet elegant bun on top of her head. Small braids tightened all over her head to attach to it, disappearing in the other blonde hairs up there. Her makeup was as minimal as possible (although Thalia had done it, so not very minimal at all) and then, to finish it off, she had a blue pearl necklace dangling at her neck. It matched the blue pearl engagement ring that decorated her finger. Her bridesmaids, Thalia and Piper, were studying their reflections in the mirror. They were wearing pale blue, matching the flowers she carried and the hankies that would be stuffed into the bestman's and groomsman's pockets. She took a deep breath. Everything was going to be perfect.

"Everything ok, Annie?" Thalia called, knowing her hated nick name would get a rise out of her. Despite her displeasure at 'Annie', Annabeth just sat down and set her chin on her hands.

"Get up!" Piper ordered. "You're going to crinkle your dress!"

"Don't you dare smudge your makeup," Thalia warned. "It took me two hours to get right."

"I remember," Annabeth said. "I was _there._"

"Ugh!" Piper exclaimed when she saw the wrinkles me sitting down for two seconds had created. "I'll be right back," she promised. As soon as she left, Annabeth sat back down again.

"Seriously, Annabeth?" Thalia asked, sitting next to her. "Is everything ok?"

Annabeth tried her best to look cheerful. "It's seriously nothing, Thals. Everything's fine."

Thalia narrowed her eyes. "Did Percy do something?" I looked over at her sharply.

"No," Annabeth stated angrily, shocked that someone could even _think_ that. "Never."

Thalia visably relaxed. "Good," she said arily. "Because then either you were hallucinating or another eidolon had gotten inside you." She turned to her, more serious. "Percy loves you, Annabeth. He would give up the world for you, he gave up being a _god _for you, even when you two weren't official. This doesn't just occasionally happen. This is the kind of things old poets used to write about."

"A lot of Poets wrote tragedies," Annabeth blurted out, before she had thought of the repercussions of such a statement.

Thalia drew back, eyebrows raised. She was surprised, Annabeth could tell. She was a realist, after all. Not a pessimist or an optimist. She knew exactly how strong Percy and she was, she knew that when they were together, they could defeat anything.

"Is that what you're worried about?" Thalia asked, perplexed. "Some sort of tragedy?"

Annabeth fiddled with a bit of fabric from her dress. "Yes," she whispered.

Thalia was silent, so silent Annabeth could hear the chiming of the grandfather clock down the hall. They were at Pipers place in the city. Her apartment was small but cosy. She shared it with Jason, who was currently running frantically around the city, trying to find a wedding present. Not that Annabeth was supposed to know of course. Although, she couldn't exactly blame them either. Hazel and Frank was getting the exact same thing and neither Hazel nor Frank had the receipt to theirs. It was a long and tiring drama that Annabeth wasn't fond of getting too far into.

After a time, Thalia's voice broke the quiet. "If something does happen," she said, in a very protective, overly sisterly way. It felt so odd to Annabeth, that this girl, who looked almost 16, would talk to her in that way, and yet, it was not odd at all. "I swear I'll take care of you, or of Percy. And it won't. You're going to have two kids Annabeth, a boy and a girl. The boy will get kicked out of every school you send it to and the girl will follow you everywhere, repeating all the things she's heard to everyone she meets." Thalia was crying now, so was Annabeth. "And those children of yours are going to take care of each other. The boy won't like it when the girl has a boy friend and the girl will always carry around a first aid kit, just because the boy is unnaturally clumsy. And Percy will laugh at them when they are young, and cry when they're getting older. And so will you. Annabeth," she picked up a new urgency now. "You and Percy, no one deserves a fairy tale more."

Annabeth nodded, hoping beyond hope the makeup was water proof, or Thalia was actually going to kill her.

Piper chose that exact moment to enter the room. She was holding some sort of iron-thing that looked seriously dangerous and probably illegal.

"I'm back!" She announced, and then saw our tear streaked faces. "What happened?"

Percy stood at the front of the aisle. Sand was filling into his shoes and the sea water was being carried by the wind and splattering onto his face. He couldn't be bothered by this, of course, but Grover's discomfort was enough. They wanted an ancient Greek wedding, but when they got to the dynamics, they decided to alter little bits here and there. For one thing, Annabeth refused to cut her hair, saying she had grown attached to the blondness and wasn't about to just hack it all off. Percy had suggested a trim, but Annabeth had put her foot down. Percy couldn't honestly say he was disappointed.

There was also a few things they liked about other marriages. Like the vows, and the presents. In the end, they decided to do whatever they wanted and just have a bit of fun.

Chiron was going to conduct the ceremony. He was standing near Percy, his face still but his eyes joyous. Percy wished he could reciprocate the feeling, but Annabeth was late. Nearly 5 minutes. Percy was starting to wish he'd never worn a watch. At least then he wouldn't look like he had a nervous tick, checking it every two seconds.

He looked out to the crowd of people. They were on a beach on Long Island sound, close to camp, but retaining the ability to allow easy access to mortals. Jason, Hazel, Frank, Leo and Reyna were sitting close to each other, all in the front row and beaming at him. Then on the other side he saw his parents and Annabeths father and step mom. None of the gods had shown up, even Dionysus, who had given a little input into the after party.

Percy was honestly cool with that fact. He knew all too well how annoying gods could be. Especially if they tried to gate crash.

Percy looked back down the aisle. Seven minutes.

Annabeth where are you?

Zeus grumbled to himself. He had taken the guise of a nondescript middle aged man, sitting close to the back. He didn't grumble because in this form, his back ached when he stood, or that he had lost all ability to taste salt, but that he no longer had a beard. Now what could he stroke when he was determining someone's fate? Exactly.

He half began to wonder if people would notice it when Poseidon shook his head. Poseidon was a younger, healthier man with a slightly handsome face and faintly brown eyes. He had a slight beard. Zeus frowned. What exactly did Poseidon think he was going to do?

_Brother, I know you well. Please refrain from morphing into something at my sons wedding. An old man suddenly growing a beard makes less sense to these mortals then it does for us._

_I still can't believe you made me come to this, _Zeus grumbled. _Did you come to Heracles' wedding?_

Poseidon had a exasperated expression on his face when he answered this. _Well no, seeing as you forbid me and all._

_Oh yes, _Zeus remembered. _That's right. But it's still ridiculous you forced me into this body! Look at Hades!_

Hades had gotten the best out of the pick. He was a ruggedly handsome, movie star-esque young man with enchanting blue eyes and a slight amount of stubble around his mouth.

_It isn't fair!_

_Please stop talking about fairness,_ A new voice interrupted. It was Aphrodite. Zeus had to concede with that. Aphrodite had drawn a tiny, bald man, with thick, large spectacles. He had all of two teeth and the dress sense of a minotaur. _I have to say, Poseidon. You do have a good imagination. I don't even think someone this ugly exists._

_Aphrodite, do try and entertain a little courtesy, _Artemis interrupted. She had gotten an attractive 30-something year old. _We don't all want you to fill our heads with your vain banter._

Artemis and Aphrodite began to squabble. Zeus sighed and closed his eyes. This was going to be a long day.

_Just be quiet! _He bellowed, watching in satisfaction as they fled back to their own selves. Both the bald man and the young woman looked uncomfortable for a while after that.

_I'm sending Aphrodite home after the ceremony_, Zeus thought privately to his brother.

Poseidon sounded relieved. _Thank goodness. I was about to offer myself._

Sometimes Zeus hated how selfless he was.

Annabeth jumped from the car and ran to the beach. Thalia and Piper ran along behind her, the _click! _Of their heels on the ground was the only sound. Annabeth hurried down the path to the beach, holding her bouquet roughly in one hand while the other made sure that the wind didn't destroy her hair.

_Oh gods, _she thought softly to herself. _He probably thinks I've run out on him. He probably thinks I don't love him… Oh gods!_

Annabeth was verging on hysterical now. She couldn't cry, she _wouldn't _cry.

She arrived at the beach, breathless, and saw the whole wedding staring at her.

Annabeth blushed a deep, crimson red and made her way awkwardly across the beach.

_Ow! _Annabeth thought when she nearly twisted her ankle after her heel lodged in some sand. _And why did Piper suggest heels?_

By the time she'd made it to where the seats were, absolutely everyone was staring. There was a group of people she swore she had never seen before in her life, and one of them, a curly hair 50-or-so-year old, looked absolutely furious.

But Percy, he was all that mattered. And when she saw him, standing down the end of the aisle, a grin of relief plastered to his face and a welcoming posture so perfect and real, she knew, knew beyond anything else, that she could not have found a better person to be with.

Because Annabeth knew right then, she finally realized, how deeply she truly, truly loved him.

She realized that one day with Percy, was worth a thousand ones of worrying of what could be.

And so, in true Annabeth and Percy style, everything ended up ok, but didn't go exactly to plan.

Annabeth grinned at the guests. "Sorry," she called. "There was an emergency. A nail emergency." This earned her a few chuckles and forgiveness. The guests (except for Percy, who was still staring at her) straightened back into their chairs, smiling to themselves and sharing a knowing look with their neighbor. _These two are perfect for each other._

Thalia and Piper arrived later, both of them puffing and both carrying their shoes.

"Ready?" Thalia asked, strapping her heel back on.

Annabeth took a deep breath, smoothed a fly away piece of hair back behind her ears and said, "Yes."

The current Apollo cabin led the Bridal procession song, with Will Solace conducting it with a baton that looked oddly like an arrow. As Annabeth walked down, she felt every eye on her, and rather than feel nervous about it, she thrived in it. Today she was going to make the best decision of her life, and all these people were going to witness it.

Percy watched as his beautiful fiancé walked down the aisle, her hair lighting up in the sun, her face happy, content.

"Tell me I'm not dreaming," Percy muttered to Grover. Grover grinned.

"You're dreaming."

"Then don't ever wake me up."

Annabeth was nearly at Percy now. Thalia and Piper looked beautiful as well, their dresses stunning and their expressions gleeful. Percy looked into the sea and thanked his absent father. The day couldn't have been better. She arrived and took his arm, leaning on him as she attempted to make the last few steps without breaking one of her heels.

"You look beautiful," Percy blurted. He turned red.

Annabeth just smiled at him. "You look handsome." Percy kissed her on the top of her head.

_This is boring! _Dionysus complained. _Let's speed things up and get to the wine guzzling contest._

Zeus frowned. _Is that still happening?_

Now Dionysus looked confused. _ It wasn't happening for a while?_

_Shhhh! _Aphrodite exclamied, her words full of emotion. _Its nearly the kiss!_

_Ew! Yuck! _Apollo said childishly.

_Stop being annoying, Apollo,_ Artemis scolded her younger twin.

_You're going to miss it! _Aphrodite persisted.

_You say that as if it's a bad thing, _Athena said snidely.

_Stop being sour_, Poseidon said. _Aphrodite, stop talking. You're distracting me._

_See! _Aphrodite exclaimed. _Even Poseidon wants to watch—_

_SHUT UP! _All the gods commanded at once. Aphrodite disconnected and went back inside herself to sulk.

There are many accounts of what the kiss was like, that Saturday afternoon on long island sound. Some say it was cheesy, other say it was romantic. There are only two who can truly explain the beauty and finesse of the perfect wedding kiss. And those people were the husband and wife to be themselves, and they didn't betray their experiences to a single being other than themselves.

There are many accounts of the perfections of the wedding. Athena complained about Annabeth's lack of punctuality. Poseidon got tears every time someone mentioned how handsome Percy was. Everyone, however, agreed that whatever Athena may think (this eventually included Athena herself) that they had never felt so truly happy for such a couple and doubt they would ever again. Until, of course, the next perfect wedding came around.

But there was something abnormally fantastic about Percy and Annabeth. Something no one could ever put their finger on, and no one ever would.

**Yay! Hope you enjoyed it! Might do a honeymoon (PG rated, don't worry) but might not.**

**Review!**

**Lots of love, MSxx**


	2. The Reception

**Disclaimer: I do not own Percy Jackson. I wish I did. I shall ask for it for Christmas and get back to you. Nor do I own the kick ass awesome songs you will see later in this chapter. If I did, I would not shut up about it. I will also request them for Christmas. I'll keep you posted.**

**Ok, so I've had a lot of requests to keep going, so here I am, back again. This is the reception/wedding party. Hope you enjoy it!**

"And I never thought I'd see the day," Sally Jackson continued, her voice thick with emotion and tears running down her face. "That Percy was this happy. He's had a rough life. A _more _that rough life. He deserves Annabeth, and she deserves him. I could not be happier for them both!"

The crowd erupted into cheers. Percy met his mothers glance and smiled, a sad 'I'm sorry I'm not your little boy anymore' smile, but a happy smile nonetheless. Sally blew him a kiss and he clapped louder. He was the last to stop. Percy was sitting next to Annabeth on the wedding party table. Next to her was Piper and Thalia and next to him was Grover. Tyson had wandered off somewhere with Ella. Percy didn't really want to know. The ballroom they were in was fantastic. Gold satin sheets of fabric fell artfully around the room, and dark brown tables with one pale blue tulip and one gold one sitting in the middle. The wedding Party was on the stage, looking at all the tables that sat around the outside of the dance floor. Next to the stage was the podium, where for the past half hour, they'd heard all the stories of Percy and Annabeth's childhood, and Percy was personally tired of the description, 'cute, green eyes' and he suspected the same went for Annabeth for 'little tuffs of blonde hair'.

"We'll go to your place on Christmas," Annabeth whispered to him, as her uncle took to the podium. "Got it?" Percy couldn't help the smile that spread over his face. They'd been making comments like that all day. 'We're at yours for Easter', or, 'How about we invite everyone over for thanksgiving?' Just little comments like that made Percy feel incredible, like he could take another thousand monsters and not even earn himself a scratch, or that he could jump all the way to Alaska and back. The tiny hints that they were husband and wife, the smallest inkling of their life together was enough to put Percy's head in a spin. A spin he never wanted to stop.

"… And that's when Annabeth said, 'It's Washington state, Uncle Rick (**A/N see what I did there?**), duh.'" The entire room burst into laughter and Annabeth smiled, a touch of nostalgia ticking her eyes. Percy picked up her hand and kissed it. Rick thanked everyone and got down, smiling at some people as he walked past. Grover stood up, and Percy turned to him, suddenly terrified.

"Wait, you're not making a speech now, are you?" Grover just smirked, pulled out some cue cards and walked to the podium.

Percy buried his face in his hands. "Oh, gods." Annabeth laughed and massaged his back.

"Well, it _is _tradition," Annabeth told him.

Percy scowled. "I hate tradition."

"You like getting a pizza every Thursday afternoon," Annabeth pointed out.

Percy tilted his head. "Ok, I dislike _most _tradition."

Annabeth patted his arm. "It's ok Sweetheart, you're making progress."

"Ladies and Gentlemen," Grover announced, standing up there, winking at Juniper and smiling at Chiron. "I am here, today, to reconstruct a very real love story.

"Our tale begins at Yancy academy. The first place me and Percy met. He was alwas protecting me, especially against Nancy Bobfit," there were some sniggers in the crowd. Grover looked up, false alarm in his voice. "No, no! Nancy Bobfit was awful! She threw Peanut butter sandwiches at me!" there were some chuckles from the crowd. Grover smiled to himself and continued.

"Annabeth told him he drooled when he slept, he told her to hold his minotaur horn while Clarisse tried to stuff his head down the toilet. I knew from then that they were a match made in Heaven." Percy laughed, Annabeth too. "Then Chiron sent us on a quest. I was asleep for most of it, but they bonded on their way to Vegas, and managed to deal with each others presence.

"And then they had to rescue me. I'm not trying to sound like I'm boasting or anything, but choosing Annabeth and Percy as my friends was one of the best decisions of my life.

"And then we had to rescue Annabeth, and Artemis," Unseen to most of the crowd, the attractive, youngish woman sitting with an odd assortment of people squirmed a little in her seat, "And Aphrodite," he rose his eyebrows. "Took Percy aside for a little chat."

Percy smiled and leant over to Annabeth, kissing her on the nose. He had told her about that, of course, after they had started to finally date, but it was still a nice story to be reminded of.

"And then came the Labyrinth. Percy and Annabeth, by now, were pretty much going out anyway. The only people who didn't know it, was them. One thing led to another, and then we had an erupted volcano, a missing Percy and a distraught Annabeth. Needless to say, when he crashed his own funeral, we were more happy than annoyed.

"And then the final battle, the commencement of the second Titan war. They were actually a couple then. _Everyone _knew it, I'm serious, everyone." Then Grover frowned. "Except perhaps Will Solace." The crowd turned it's attention to him and he blushed, muttering something about 'being new' and 'a trip to Monaco'. "And then, we threw them in the lake and they made-out at the bottom. If you'll excuse me quoting a friend of mine, 'About time!'"

The hall burst into cheers as Grover went to sit down.

"How was I?" He asked Percy, who had picked up Annabeth's hand and was smoothing circles into her skin.

Percy shrugged. "I bet I could do better."

Annabeth snorted. "And then I would beat you both."

"Alright, an impromptu speech off," Percy said, smiling at her. "One picks the subject, the other gives a speech, and then we switch." Annabeth raised her eyebrows and drained her champagne.

"Wait until I've had a few more of these," he motioned for the waiter. "Then we'll see, Seaweed Brain."

_She couldn't do much worse_, Athena muttered, sitting with her arms crossed. _Look at him, holding her hand, kissing her on the nose. What does he think this is, the 1940's?_

_Oh, do shut up Athena,_ Aphrodite chastised. _It's bad enough you're hating one of my best creations, you're also putting down all of us who enjoyed the 1940's._

_Yes, please be quiet, _Poseidon interrupted warily. _You've been going on for the past half hour._

Athena started angrily, _I have—_

_BE QUIET! _Zeus thundered. Then he realized everyone was wincing. _What? Another speech is starting._

_Oh! So you're enjoying yourself now! _Poseidon said quickly.

_If you don't just shut your mouth, I'll tell Amphitrite who broke that vase_, Zeus warned menacingly.

_…Triton broke that vase._

_…Oh._

_Awkward! _Apollo sang.

Now it was a group effort, even Athena when they yelled at him, _SHUT UP!_

_Sor-ry_, Apollo muttered. They all wisely ignored him after that.

Annabeth leaned back in her chair as Thalia made her speech. Hers was sadder, it was about before, when she was seven and they were all running around together, Thalia and Annabeth and Luke.

Annabeth was glad Percy hadn't let go of her hand. Thalia finished quickly, smiling at everyone, apologizing about the new morale of the room.

Percy suddenly spoke, in a low voice, to Annabeth. "If things had been different, Luke would be my best man, you know? And maybe Silena would have been a bridesmaid."

"But things are different." Annabeth was getting annoyed with him. Things were good, things were _great_. Why think about what might have been?

"Yeah, things are good," he still seemed sad though. Her impatience melted away when she looked more closely at his face. His eyes were down, his mouth was decidedly unhappy.

Annabeth squeezed his hand. "But they could have been better."

"Hey Annabeth," Piper whispered to Annabeth. She leant away from Percy and moved her ear closer to Pipers mouth. "Are you supposed to dance soon?" Thalia had sat down and finally, Paul Blofis was talking about Percy, including all the times he got into awkward situations at school, much to the amusement of the crowd.

"Hey Percy, we're supposed to dance soon," Annabeth whispered to him. He looked up, shocked.

"What?" He asked, lost. "It can't be—" he checked his watch and swore. He glared at some of the areas he knew some of the speechmakers were. "They didn't take half an hour."

Grover grinned. "Sorry, man."

Annabeth raised her eyebrows when she saw his watch. "Missed by two minutes! Gods! What are we to do?"

Percy tried to force back his smile. "Yep, whoops."

Annabeth patted him on the leg. "Don't worry, I'm sure Paul has plenty more embarrassing stories to tell."

"Ehh," Percy tilted his head. " He's maybe four fifths of the way through."

Annabeth raised her eyebrows. "I find that _hard _to believe."

Percy grinned, a trouble makers grin, the one Annabeth had fallen in love with. "He's only telling the stories he knows of."

Annabeth nodded, conceding the point. "Now _that _makes sense." Percy kissed the top of her head.

Percy took Annabeth's hand and they travelled down the stairs from the stage to the newly lit dance floor. He put one hand at her waist and used the other to hold her hand, while she placed her hand on his shoulder and squeezed his hand when the chatting died down and everyone watched, as the blonde daughter of Athena and the black haired son of Poseidon, readied themselves for the most important dance of their lives.

"You ready?" Annabeth asked, softly, so that only the two of them could hear.

Percy grinned. "Nearly."

"That's not very promising," Annabeth frowned.

Percy shrugged and counted the first few beats of the song. "Very, very nearly," he promised.

Percy led the first step and Annabeth smiled. "Then it's a good thing," they swayed and turned. "That I know how to lead."

1,2,3… 1,2,3… The danced turned around them. A waltz, a perfect, seamless waltz. Something Annabeth picked and Percy, for the life of him, could not remember the name of. It was little known, but beautiful all the same.

1,2,3…

More and more dancers joined them. Tyson was managing (somehow) with himself and the newly returned Ella from wherever it was they had been. Piper was with Jason, laughing at something, and Leo had kicked it off with the quiet, kind girl he had met. A mousey brown, freckled girl named Eliza.

1,2,3…

Annabeth, true to her word, led the dance. They stepped perfectly, the were a flawless team. They would _always _be a flawless team.

1… 2… 3… the dance began to slow down. It was coming to it's end. A perfect dance, a dance spent gazing into each others eyes. A dance where, for the first time, they worked together as Husband and Wife.

_'… NUTBUSH CITY LIMITS!...' _

Zeus groaned as the most overplayed song of the past decade came on. The crowd was conforming to societies expectations and doing a rather awful rendition of the accompanied dance. Even Poseidon had gotten up. He'd congratulated Percy and Annabeth, and Zeus had known how he hurt a little when his favorite son looked into his eyes and didn't know who he was.

'…_NUTBUSH! YEAH, NUTBUSH…'_

"Come on," Aphrodite said out loud when she saw him sitting by himself. Typically, she had gone against Poseidon's rules and changed into a _very _good looking young woman, with silky chestnut hair and a striking red dress. "You're going to miss all the fun."

Zeus scowled. "I hate this song."

Aphrodite frowned. "How can you hate this song? No one hates this song."

"I do," Zeus assured her.

"Well," she said briskly, beginning to walk off. "Don't have too much fun, over here with all of your friends."

The song ended and everyone clapped. He saw Percy and Annabeth holding hands and laughing, standing with all their friends in the centre of the floor.

A new song came on. This made Zeus groan even more.

'_IS THIS JUST REAL LIFE, OR IS THIS JUST FANTASY?'_

Bohemian Rhapsody, really?

_'…NO ESCAPE FROM REALITY!'_

Now he was going to _have _to dance!

_'I'M JUST A POOR BOY! I NEED NO SYMPATHY!'_

And so Zeus, lord and king of all the gods, stood up and walked over to a dance floor, where he danced, actually _danced _with a couple hundred of mortals.

He was just as shocked as you are.

"Ok," Percy said, grinning at his bride. "You've got the word, 'Sexy.'"

"Sexy?" Annabeth asked, tottering slightly. Then she grinned. "Got it."

A good looking woman in a red dress was holding a timer. "Ok, you've got one minute to wow us. Go!"

"Sexy is an adjective found in a dictionary. It probably says 'informal', although that doesn't really make any sense." She frowned in thought for a second.

"Anyway, the definition of sexy should be, and _will _be, a very large picture of me. It will be that time I didn't brush my hair for a week and wore tracksuit pants everyday. It's to show that sexy beings even look fantastic when they're past the point, for most people anyway, where they should look like Garfield on a Monday." She giggled a little. "Garfield would be there too. Oh yeah, and Percy. Except he would be there for ironic purposes, you know? Yeah…" The entire crowd was laughing. Percy grinned up at her.

"Ok, so, other things to say on 'sexy'… ummmm…"

"And stop!" The lady said, grinning and pushing her finger down on the pause button. The crowd burst into applause and Annabeth walked off stage, only staggering a little bit as she managed the stairs. "Percy, it's your turn."

Percy grinned and walked onto the stage, giving Annabeth a quick peck as they passed. "Good luck!" she called.

Percy made it up onto the stage and grinned down at everyone staring up at him.

"Ok!" Annabeth called, giggling to herself. "Ok, your subject is, drum roll please!" Everyone in the room thundered on their knees.

"Potatoes!" Percy breathed a sigh of relief. Knowing Annabeth, he thought it was going to be basic neurological physics or something.

"Potatoes!" Percy yelled at the crowd. "An easier subject has never been given! What _can't _you do with Potatoes? There's French fries, for one. The French must have been super clever to make them. And then Gnocchi, you know that pasta thing? Yeah, that stuff is _amazing_. What about chips? They're like, the most popular snack ever consumed. And then there's roast potatoes. I don't actually think people knew the phrase 'heaven on earth', before someone invented them. And then there was the Potato famine in Ireland, a part of human history and—"

"Times up!" The lady yelled, waving the timer in the air. The crowd burst into applause and laughter.

Percy walked off the stage, laughing with people as he passed them and grinning, at _everything_. He was caught between a state of deliriousness and a one of sleep and could not have been happier. After Percy's and Annabeth's monumental debuts, the impromptu speeches were handed out to everyone else who wanted a go.

Percy gave Thalia the topic of 'why men are better than women' and Annabeth gave Grover the topic, 'basic bowel movements of a satyr', which made him go bright red and resulting in him refusing to look Juniper in the eye for the rest of the evening.

Percy made his way outside, just to get some air. The doors opened easily at his touch and the cool wind pushed away all the heat from all the bodies and the lights in the room. Percy moved to the edge of a balcony and looked around him. They were in a mansion just outside the sprawling metropolis he was used to. But the way the grounds looked, with a lake apparently full of fish, and gardens filled with native and exotic fauna, you wouldn't know it. Percy leant against the railing and tried to clear his head. He had drunk quite a bit. Not as much as Leo (who had gone up to him and demanded to know when Philip was arriving, despite the fact that Philip didn't exist) but still enough that he was going to have a killer headache the next day.

Percy spun around when he heard the door open. Annabeth stood there, the light from the room catching around her edges and painting her into a very surreal sort of angel.

"Hey, Seaweed Brain," she said, the cold air sobering her a little bit, just as it did for him. "What are you doing?"

Percy shrugged. "Breathing."

Annabeth smiled, moving to his side and snuggling up to him. "It does get a bit too much in there."

Percy frowned. "Since when did we invite my second cousins?"

Annabeth smirked. "Since you were sure they'd give us a toaster waffle maker."

"Oh yeah," Percy said, remembering. "They better have."

Annabeth just laughed and swatted him on the arm.

The waited outside and lost track of time. They were immersed in each others presence. Neither needed to say a word in order for the other to understand. When Annabeth first shivered, Percy took off his tux jacket and gave it to her. She smiled up at him, clasped his hand and leant her head on his shoulder.

Annabeth sighed when she noticed where the moon was in the sky. "We have to go back in soon."

"Why?" Percy asked, checking his watch. Then he swore. "It's nearly 2 o'clock!"

"Yeah, we need to make our speeches," Annabeth said, beginning to walk back to the doors and guided Percy behind her. "Or, more importantly, we have to make sure no one's on fire." Percy obliged and walked behind her, slowly though. As it turned out, his reluctance was a hidden blessing. As soon as Annabeth's hand touched the door, a figure stepped out of the shadows.

Percy's heart was in his mouth. His demigod instincts were on high alert. He felt for riptide in his pocket and was instantly reassured when I felt it's familiar weight.

Percy's eyes adjusted to the new figures handsome, young features and gasped when he recognized him.

"Nico?" He asked.

"Sorry I'm so late," Nico said, ashamedly. "The congestion on the Fields of Asphodel nearly did my head in."

"Uh, no, that's fine," Annabeth promised, opening the door and gesturing for him to come in. "Come on, it's not a real party until a child of Hades arrives."

Nico looked unsure. "I would just ruin everything."

"Nah, come on man," Percy said, grinning at him. "Hazel's already moved the party up to a whole new level. You'd just make it awesome." Nico, not all that reluctantly, Percy might add, moved into the ballroom with them, checking around nervously and smiling a little when he saw Hazel and Frank dancing together on a table.

Percy sighed. He turned to his new wife. "Shall I get them down, or will you."

Annabeth sighed as well. "Frankly, it looks like a two man job." And so Annabeth and Percy disappeared through the crowd, leaving Nico in the debatably capable hands of Leo Valdez, who had come around at that moment to demand the whereabouts of the non-existent Philip.

_Would you do me the honor of letting me listen to my sons wedding speech, brother dear?_

Zeus grumbled again. _He's taking forever .I think I may have left the oven on._

Poseidon sighed. _Then zip back up there and turn it off. You'll be done in half a second._

Zeus was quiet. _Actually, I don't think I have left it on. Hera dear? Would you mind zipping up to make sure?_

Hera looked at him. _What, so I'm supposed to check on the oven because I'm a _woman_, is that it? _Hera had recently discovered feminism, a phase Zeus wished over quickly, but one that Artemis encouraged. He wasn't sure how it would end, but it would end badly.

Percy's speech saved Zeus from a response. "And I want to thank all the deranged side of my family, Zeus, Hera, Hades, Apollo, Athena, Aphrodite. You guys definitely deserve the term 'mad as a hatter.'" There was some appreciative laughter from the crowd and Zeus narrowed his eyes.

_Did he just insult us?_ He asked.

_Yes_, said Apollo.

_But don't turn him into a porcupine_, Aphrodite said quickly. _Not tonight at least._

Poseidon shrugged. _He didn't insult me._

_Nor me! _Artemis piped.

_I think he was insulting us as a whole and used those guys as specific examples, _Hermes mused, he himself pleased that he wasn't personally attacked.

_I think he only meant to insult Athena for being a wet sock, and just mentioned us to soften the blow, _Aphrodite said, rather meanly.

_I think he was annoyed Aphrodite had ruined his love life,_ Athena snapped back. _You know, probably only mentioned the others so she wouldn't push the world into another war._

_I _said _I was sorry! _Aphrodite grumbled.

_I think we may be reading too much into this_, Poseidon put in.

_Do be quiet! We're missing Annabeth's speech! _Athena bellowed inside each of their heads.

_That's kind of hypocritical, _Artemis told her. _You're kind of mean._

_Oh! Good one! _Athena said as the crowd cheered around them. _We missed it!_

_Wow,_ Poseidon said. _That was short._

_How dare you attempt to make a mockery of one of _my _children! _Athena was burning with rage. _How dare—_

_Ok, I'm taking you home, _Zeus said, interrupting her, grabbing her by the arm and picking her up. _We are not starting another war at a wedding. Once was enough._

_That was not my fault! _Athena said, miffed. _I don't see you dragging Aphrodite or Hera off!_

Zeus raised his eyebrows. _I don't see Aphrodite or Hera almost declaring war on my brother._

_I think she's had a bit much to drink, _Apollo commented. _I'm not sure even a goddess can take that much liquor._

_I think you need to shut your—_

But she was interrupted when Zeus, majorly fed up with his family, dissapeared with her in a flurry of winds. The ballroom shook and a moment of panic resided over the mortals, before it passed and they continued on, as if that middle aged woman and the beardless man had never existed at all.

Percy and Annabeth sat next to each other in the car. Annabeth had changed into a shorter, lighter dress and had shaken out the painful curls and clips and replaced her hair in a ponytail. Percy had changed his pants and shoes, and had replaced his tux jacket for a much more informal, comfortable leather one.

"Ready?" He asked her quietly, as the car pulled away from the crub.

Annabeth snuggled up next to him and rested her head on his shoulder. "We'll just have to see."

**Thanks guys, I have to say, this is a record for me. So many reviews a chapter? O_o.**

**Anyway, I think I replied to all the other reviews. Here are the anonymous reviewers responses:**

**Unknown: This is for you :)**

**Eliza scullvch g: Yeah, ok. YOLO. Here's the dinner scene.**

**MINECRAFTIAN: sorry about your wine guzzling scene, I'm not actually sure that would have fallen under K or whatever I rated this. Lol, good idea though ;)**


	3. The Honeymoon

**Disclaimer: Well, I asked mum about the rights for PJ and she said she didn't think it was possible. :(. So no, I don't own it, sorry to say, and also, about Bohemian Rhapsody and Nutbush, mum was equally in denial. Oh well… Maybe for my birthday?**

Percy and Annabeth were in heaven. Not literally heaven, they hadn't died, although they were so tired they felt like they could have been. The small villa on one of the Greek Islands had been Annabeth's idea. She like the architecture of the largish town nearby, and Percy like how close to the sea it was. If they were to be completely honest with each other, however, they would have admitted they chose the place for the others idea. Annabeth knew that the sea would suit Percy, and Percy knew that the town had some sort of history. Perfect for Annabeth.

Percy picked Annabeth up. She was warm under his arms.

"Gods!" He said, as he heaved her through the doorway. "Did you eat a hell hound for dinner last night?"

Annabeth hit him in the shoulder. Percy laughed but it actually hurt quite a bit. Percy smiled to himself.

"And what did you eat last night?" She retorted. "A pansy salad? Mush! Mush!" Percy gave her an odd look. They were already inside and she was still grasping her hands around his neck.

"We're inside," Percy said.

"Yes, I can see that. I am a daughter of the wisdom goddess. It would be a bit embarrassing if I couldn't," Annabeth remarked.

"I don't think you understood what I meant," Percy said, eyebrows raised. "As in, I think that I'm actually about to drop you."

"You won't drop me," Annabeth said, still refusing to move. "You're pretty strong, husband dear."

"And you're very stubborn, wife dear," Percy said, completely releasing his hold from underneath her. Annabeth would have crashed to the floor if it wasn't for her hands still firmly around Percy's neck.

"Nice try," she said. It would have been impressive if it wasn't for the fact that she was breathless and it was only then that the first trickles of fear left her eyes.

She was weighing Percy down. He gave it 30 secounds before either his neck snapped or he fell on top of her.

"Seriously Annabeth, you're really heavy."

"And I'm half a mind to hang on here until you…"

"Until I what?" Percy asked, exasperated and running out of oxygen.

"Until you admit my speech was better than yours," Annabeth said triumphantly.

Percy frowned. "Your wedding speech? Because that went for all of five seconds."

"What?" Annabeth asked. Now it was her turn to be confused. "Oh!" she said when she realized. "No! No, the impromptu speeches we made."

"Oh, them," Percy said, remembering. He really was almost about to fall over. "Sure, fine, yours was better." Dissapointed, Annabeth let go of his neck. Percy immediately pulled up his hands and massaged the spot where she had been holding.

"Damn, you definitely don't know when to let go, do you?" He asked her.

"Well, you really don't care much about your dignity," she said.

"I think that you're misinterpreting what I said," Percy said, a grin forming on his face. "It's sad, really. I thought that you of all people would be able to tell when I told a lie."

Annabeth raised an eyebrow. "I suppose it's true what they say." She left him at that and made her way into the bedroom.

Percy frowned. "What do they say?"

"You have sand where your brain should be."

"That isn't an answer," Percy followed his wife to where she was taking her hair out, brushing it between her fingers.

"That's because you have kelp in your head."

Percy smiled a little. "I don't think that the insults are really getting this conversation anywhere." Annabeth caught her hand on another tangle and Percy sighed, approaching nearer and began to help her. Her hair fell easily when he, completely dedicated to the task, unthreaded the plane hair. Annabeth had given up almost three seconds after Percy said, understanding when she'd be more of a hindrance than a help.

"There," he said, curling one of her locks around her finger, satisfied. "You're knot free."

"Thanks," Annabeth said, smiling and pecking her husband on the cheek.

"No problem," Percy said, collapsing onto the bed and smiling at the roof. Annabeth fell back as well, her head on Percy's shoulder and her hair fanned behind her. Knot free.

"We're married," Annabeth said.

Percy laughed. "If you hadn't already worked that out, Athena would be very disappointed in you."

Annabeth smiled. "It's just… we're _married_. Actually _married_. How many demigods do you think, especially children of the Big Three, live to be old enough to be _married_?"

Percy had sobered. "Not enough."

"No," Annabeth agreed softly. "Definitely not." She sat up and looked down at him, tears sparking in her eyes.

"What happens if we die?" She asked shakily. "What happens if we're finally happy and then we _die_?"

Percy sat up as well and took Annabeth's hands inside his own. "We're not, I promise. I mean, we're a team Annabeth. I protect you and you protect me. That's how it's always been. I'm not planning on dropping that anytime soon."

Annabeth couldn't help it. All the time, during the wedding, the talk of babies and futures and jobs outside of surviving had been overwhelming. Children? Would they be like her and Percy? Would she be able to have children, knowing that there was no way she could protect them from the almost certain future of war and death? What kind of mother would she be if she did? Future jobs? How many of their co-workers would die when a monster attacked?

"It's just…" Annabeth knew she didn't have to spell out the end of her sentence. Percy pulled her into a warm, complete hug. She hugged him back and smelt him in. Sea water and deodorant. Percy.

"Bed time?" Percy asked, grinning.

Annabeth smiled and laughed. "Just about."

* * *

The morning found Percy and Annabeth sitting around the breakfast bar, a glass of orange juice in Annabeth's hand and a glass of blue chocolate milk in Percy's.

They smiled at each other.

"So," Percy said. "Plans for today?"

"Want to play card games?" Annabeth suggested.

Percy thought for a second. "Only strip poker."

Annabeth batted at his arm. "Don't be ridiculous. You can't play poker with two people."

"And it's more fun to strip when everything's new and unexpected."

"Percy!"

"What?" Percy asked, grinning and joining his wife on the other side of the breakfast bar. "I'm not lying, am I?"

The couple moved closer.

"No," Annabeth's response was a whisper.

Their lips met.

* * *

"Ok," Annabeth said, pushing back a piece of hair that had fallen out of her braid. "So, Snap, you game?"

Percy wrinkled up his nose. "No. Snap is boring."

Annabeth grinned. "Not when there are prizes."

Percy grinned back. "I'm listening."

Annabeth shook her head at her husband's eager face. "I'm afraid it's going to be a bit of a disappointment. All I've got is ice-cream."

Percy beamed. "I can definitely do ice-cream."

"Loser has to buy the winner whatever ice-cream they want? To be used whenever the winner wants?" Annabeth suggested.

Percy rubbed his hands together and sank onto the floor, opposite Annabeth. "This is going to be hectic."

Annabeth dealt out two packs of cards (they'd argued over the colour of the backs, red and green, and decided to just use them both) and Percy picked his up.

"You are going down, Mrs. Jackson," He said, grinning.

"Uh, you forget who you're talking to, _Mr. Jackson_," Annabeth said. She tapped the side of her head. "Athena always has a plan."

Annabeth dealt first, and then Percy. Even with his fierce determination and battle ready reflexes, Annabeths hand always managed to squeeze under his. Soon enough, Percy had only three cards left.

"This is mortifying," he announced.

"Hush," Annabeth scolded. "Imagine buying an ice-cream for you! $50 is not an acceptable price for an ice-cream."

Percy scoffed. "50's a bit of a stretch."

Annabeth gave him a look.

"Alright," he conceded. "A little bit of a stretch."

He earned himself another look.

"A minor stretch?"

"I will throw you off a cliff."

"Pfft. Jason will save me."

"He's in DC with Piper."

"WE'RE IN LOVE ANNABETH. WE'LL FIND A WAY."

"Right."

There was a pause in which Percy dramatically inhaled and exhaled, and Annabeth surveyed her distressed husband a little wearily.

"You finished?" she asked.

There was a pause. "Yep. Now I am."

There was a flurry of playing, and unsurprisingly, Annabeth reined victorious.

"Alright!" she said brightly, jumping up and dusting off the bottom of her skirt. "Lunch time!"

"Yes!" Percy said, grinning, all thoughts of the expensive ice-cream Annabeth was going to demand gone from his mind. "I've been waiting for this since breakfast!"

Annabeth gave him a look. "So, it never occurred to you to grab a snack?"

"Of course I grabbed a few snacks!" Percy said, a little indignantly. "But this is a main meal, right? And you'll have brought nice food, am I correct?"

Annabeth headed out the doorway. "We're eating the Goats cheese dad gave me."

"Uh, correction, _you _are eating the goats cheese your father gave us. There is no way I'm digesting that. It smells like Clarisse's socks."

"I promise, you'll like it."

"…Fine. But if I vomit, you're nursing me until I get better."

"And all it entails."

"Must you turn everything I say sexual?" They were in the kitchen now, and had separated, Annabeth reaching for the bread and Percy the spreads and other things stored on the bench.

"Yes," came Annabeth's blatant response.

The sandwich set up station took place on the breakfast bar, and Percy made sure to spread the smallest amount of goats cheese he could and pile the rest with things he actually like. He even added a few anchovies (left neglected to the side as neither particularly cared for them) in order to balance out the taste.

They moved to the table and Annabeth picked up a Newspaper, and Percy began on his sandwich.

There was a few moments of the only sound being Percy's chewing and the slight crinkling of paper as Annabeth caught up with the daily news.

Annabeth threw the paper down on the table. "So?"

"So what?"

"How do you like it?" she demanded.

"Like what?"

"Don't play dumb with me, Perseus Jackson. I know where you sleep."

Percy was silent for a few minutes. "It's not that bad."

Annabeth surveyed his face for a hint of sarcasm. When she found that there was none she jumped up and started dancing on the table. "Yes! Yes! Hahaha! I knew it! I _knew _it! Percy Jackson, most stubborn man alive, tries Goats Cheese and _likes _it!"

"Please stop shouting. You're making a scene."

"I made Percy try something new, I made Percy try something new!" She sang and kept dancing around the table as her disgruntled husband stared up at her. Until, gracelessly, she slipped on the newspaper left on the table and would have fallen swiftly to the floor, had Percy not jumped up and caught her.

There was a brief silence.

"Well," Annabeth said, awkwardly. "That could have ended worse."

"Yes," Percy agreed. "You could have kept singing. And dancing. And acting superior."

Annabeth was about to answer. She truly was. And she promises that it would have been witty and funny and left her husbands remarks in the dust. But their faces were so close. So she leant in, very quickly, like they were 14 again, uncertain and unsure, and kissed him.

Percy held her close to him. They were so enraptured in each other that a bomb could have fallen, Olympus could have shattered and all that would have mattered was that the two of them didn't let each other go.

They broke apart.

"Sorry," Annabeth said.

"What for?" Percy asked.

"Giving you a bruise," Annabeth said, pointing to a place she may have bitten too hard.

Percy winked at her. "I don't think, in the grand scheme of things, that really matters much. Anyway, I heel quickly."

"Are we going to finish these sandwiches?" Annabeth asked.

"We're going to need our energy, aren't we?"

"I'm going to pretend I didn't hear that," Annabeth said, sighing and slipping back into her seat just as Percy slipped into his.

They began to eat and simply enjoy each others company. Then, Annabeth looked over at his very full lunch. "What could you have possibly stuffed in there?"

"Goats cheese, ham, normal cheese—"

"Tasty cheese," Annabeth interrupted. "There's no such thing as 'Normal Cheese'."

"Uh, ok, fine. Tasty cheese, mayonnaise, lettuce, anchovies—"

"What?" Annabeth gasped at the last ingredient. "I was kissing you with your stinky anchovy breath?"

"Uh," Percy opened up his sandwich and saw that the few anchovies he had hurriedly pushed in had nearly all been eaten. "Yeah."

"Well, we all know what you're doing after this."

"We do?"

"Brushing your teeth. Your lips might taste like salt, but your breath doesn't have to taste like fish."

Percy grinned. "My lips taste like salt?"

Annabeth blushed deep red. "Shut up, Seaweed Brain."

* * *

Mid next day Percy walked to the end of the pier. The sky was a searing, periwinkle blue with thin clouds the only unpromising risk of rain. The sea that surrounded where he was standing was brilliant and clear. Even at the depth he was at, he could nearly count the grains of sand at the bottom. The island itself had was amazing. Sheer cliffs claimed the southern side, while a flat, slightly sloping mixture of woods and grasslands stretched up from the north. The Town had situated on the East, and Annabeth and Percy's Villa was half an hour's walk away.

The locals had been kind enough, a little hostile and possessive, but as welcoming as anybody sick of tourists.

"Hello, Perseus," A voice from behind him announced itself.

Percy swiveled, shooting his hand to his pocket where he felt the familiar grip of riptide. He relaxed when he saw his father, standing in a place that had been barren a few seconds ago.

"Oh," Percy said, his speeding heartbeat slowing. "Hello Father."

"How have you been?" Poseidon asked.

"Married," Percy answered. "So, good. You?"

Poseidon chuckled. "Nothing as exciting as marriage, I'm afraid. Well, not personally."

Percy narrowed his eyes in confusion. "Whose wedding did you go to?"

Poseidon hid a smile. A small secret smile that Percy, for the life of him, couldn't work out. "A relative of a relative of mine," he answered vaguely.

"Right," Percy said, annoyed. "Perfectly cryptic. To be expected."

Poseidon chuckled again, his good mood picking up a slight breeze around the island, stilling the waves a little. Percy sighed in relief. The heat had been overwhelming. "I'm actually here, if you would care to believe it, to congratulate you on your marriage and welcome Annabeth to the family."

"The family she's already a part of?" Percy clarified.

Poseidon smiled. "Yes. That family."

"Oh, that's fine. I was just clarifying your insanity."

Poseidon's good mood began to melt away a little bit. The breeze dropped.

"Speaking of Annabeth, I should really be getting back," Percy said. "She said either I make my sandwich or it doesn't come."

Poseidon smiled at his daughter-in-law. "Yes, I believe that is a fair thing to ask of a person."

Percy smiled as well. "I don't think Annabeth can actually make sandwiches."

Poseidon raised an eyebrow. "Sandwiches are the easiest things to cook in all of heaven, earth and Hades. That's almost an impossibility."

Percy shrugged. "I was more thinking that you know, a piece of fruit would be easier."

"You don't actually have to do anything with fruit," Poseidon argued.

"You have to cut it up," Percy pointed out.

"Yes," Poseidon nodded, his mood returning. "There is that."

"Great."

"Fantastic."

They stood awkwardly, staring into the ocean for a moment or two.

Both at once they made excuses to leave. Both loud and apologetic, both exaggerated and mostly made up. Percy wanted to get back to Annabeth, Poseidon simply wanted to get away from the awkwardness of the conversation.

Then, after an awkward handshake in which both of them wished to skip over, they hurried apart, Percy treading along the pier and Poseidon, after a thoughtful look at his favorite child, summoned a wave that took him deep under water to where the majestic kingdom of the Sea god waited.

* * *

Percy and Annabeth walked along the same path Percy had taken that very morning. The sun was setting now, lighting up the water in brilliant hues of oranges, reds, yellows and pinks. Clouds swarmed around the sun, capturing and projecting the light forcing its way through them. A chilling wind was the only flaw upon the day, and as that made Annabeth clutch tighter to Percy's chest, he didn't think, in the end, that it was a flaw at all.

"This is nice," Annabeth said. "All we need now is some violinist to serenade us."

"Yeah," Percy said. "But not violinist. Violins make my head hurt."

"What instead?"

"What about a celloist?" Percy suggested. "Cellos are cool."

"Percy that is entirely ridiculous," Annabeth stated.

"No it isn't!" Percy stated. "Wait, why?"

"Can you imagine lugging along a cello while we walked? They're huge!"

"Suppose," Percy agreed. Then he turned thoughtful. "A flute wouldn't be too bad."

"No," Annabeth agreed. "A flute would be perfect."

They continued walking. Ten minutes later, as the sun touched the sea, Percy and Annabeth arrived at the small town. There was a small amount of shops, a gift store, Post Office, General store and a few others, and in the town there were many more people then around the other side of the island.

"Hey look," Percy said. "People."

"Hey," Annabeth said. "Haven't seen the likes of them in a while."

The newly weds walked down the street, popping inside the General store for a litre of milk (Percy slipped chocolate and wine inside the basket, Annabeth pretended not to notice until they came to the register) and then continuing down. They stopped outside the gift store.

"We should get something," Annabeth said. "To remind ourselves of this."

"We have it in our brains, don't we?" Percy asked, not overly eager to jump into the tourist hole.

"Not eager?" they turned and saw a backpacker, a young, female British traveler with piercings all up her ear and multiple necklaces around her neck. "Not surprised. I wouldn't be, in your shoes."

"Why?" Annabeth asked.

"It's obvious, isn't it? Souvenirs are fun and all, but they don't remind you of what you've seen, they remind you of the name, and if you're lucky, the act of buying the souvenir itself," she answered.

"So, what do we do?" Annabeth asked. She so dearly wanted to remember this, to remember _all _of this. Her honeymoon had been planned since she was twelve and she wasn't going to let it all just _finish_.

"Photos have always worked, for me," the backpacker said, shrugging. "And a scrap book of little things you pick up along the way."

"Like a stick," Percy said, before he could stop himself.

"Like a map or a feather or business card," she corrected.

Annabeth looked thoughtful. "Thanks."

She led Percy, after a swift but courteous farewell, into the gift shop, looking around until she found what she was looking for. She bought the small, cheap journal and a plain black pen and gluestick, clutching tightly to the bag as if it was worth more than the meager stash she had just paid for.

Annabeth and Percy exited. The night was settling around them, people were changing from families and the elderly, to the young travelers, eager to see what the island could provide for them at night.

"Oh my gods, Annabeth," Percy said, suddenly, grinning stupidly. "There's an ice-cream store."

"So?" she asked.

"The Snap game prize!"

"It said I could get it wherever I wanted."

"Come on, Annabeth, be spontaneous!" Percy dragged his unwilling wife into the lit up ice-cream store. The store was plain, with only the usual ice-cream, glass fronted, display and then a kind looking old man waiting behind the counter, on which heaved an old fashioned cash register.

"Look! Chocolate! And vanilla! And _strawberry_!"

"Percy, you really aren't selling the three most common flavors, unfortunately." Annabeth wandered up and looked at the ice-cream as she said this, marveling that, despite how basic the flavors were, the ice-cream looked extra creamy and shiny and worth eating.

Annabeth paused as she read the sign of one sitting in the back. "Excuse me," she called across to the old man. "What does it mean by 'Chocolate Pudding Fruit'?"

The man, in disjointed English and hand gestures, managed to get across that Chocolate Pudding Fruit was a real fruit found in the tropics. The fruit tasted like chocolate pudding, and was amazing as an ice-cream.

Annabeth hesitated. How many opportunities did a person have to try Chocolate Pudding fruit?

"Percy?" she called over to her husband. "You've won me over. I'll have a large Chocolate pudding Fruit ice-cream."

"That's a mouthful," Percy said, and then he grinned. "Literally."

In a movie or a poor comedy tv show, crickets would have chirped in the silence that followed.

"Alright, we all know why you didn't follow Leo into comedy," Annabeth remarked.

"Does anyone know why _Leo _went into comedy?" Percy asked, pulling out his wallet.

"Honey, we've been over this before, he's _hilarious_," Annabeth stated as she accepted her ice-cream with a smile, a nod and a small word of thanks.

The two walked from the town and back around to where their villa waited.

"Oh my gods," Annabeth said, her mouth still full as she savoured the first bite. "Oh my gods, Percy, this is amazing."

"Awesome, let me have some," Percy said, reaching over.

"Gods no!" Annabeth jumped back, taking another bite. "This is perfection, this is like someone with Midas touch, except with deliciousness, came and touched it. This is almost better then ambrosia!"

"You're totally exaggerating," Percy said, exasperated.

Annabeth shook her head, her eyes wide. "I'm not, that's the thing. This is so good!"

"Then let me have some!"

Annabeth giggled and raced off down the path, the bag with the diary, pen and glue stick thumping against her waist as she ran. She glanced back and saw Percy chase after her, the bag with the groceries hitting his hip, colliding with a muffled _clunk! _every time it hit.

The unused napkin from the ice-cream was the first thing they stuck in.

The label from the wine was the second.

The label from the Goats cheese container was the third.

* * *

**There you go! And btw, Chocolate Pudding Fruit exists and it is delicious and it makes my brain melt. I don't think they've made it into ice cream, but if they do…**

**Omg.**

**I cant even cope with that thought.**

**-Meggie**


	4. The Rest

**Hey guys! Final chapter up now! This one will be short and basically how I see Percabeth ending up. The italics will be the summary's of the years and then the normal will be the excerts.**

**Btw this is a lot shorter then I usually make them.**

_The years passed and the love Percy and Annabeth held for each other never died. It was admittedly, as all couples must struggle through, tried at times, but they never lost sight of why they fell for each other in the first place._

_Three years after their honeymoon, after they had travelled around the world a few times, Annabeth fell pregnant._

"God's Annabeth! Are you serious?" Percy ran at his wife and scooped her up, burying his face into her neck.

"Well… yes. It wouldn't really do to joke about this sort of thing," Annabeth said back dryly. "Now would you mind putting me down?"

Percy placed her down carefully. He looked worried. "It's ok, right? Like, I didn't hurt it or anything."

Annabeth laughed a little. "No, Percy, if this baby's anything like you, it'll definitely survive an overzealous hug."

Percy grinned, then he squatted and looked at Annabeth's stomach. "Hey, little one. Just so you know, if you're a boy, your name's going to be Percy jr."

Annabeth raised her eyebrows. "I was going to pretend to humour you, but you'd take it literally."

Percy grinned. "If it's a girl I'd totally opt for Annabeth jr."

Annabeth wasn't amused. Well, she was a little bit.

"We have a whole nine months to figure it out," Annabeth pointed out.

Percy groaned. "Nine months of having a hormonal, moody wife? Not sounding all that fun, to be honest."

Annabeth just laughed and sank down to where Percy was squatting, and hugged around his neck. "There are worse things in life, Seaweed Brain. Remember that."

_They were blessed, 9 months and three days later, with a tiny baby boy, with a tuft of blonde hair and stunningly intense green eyes. Names were something they couldn't decide upon, it was a fight between Finn, Jake and Chase._

_Chase eventually won._

_Three years passed._

"Can I hear it again?" Chase begged, his small hands sticking in his mothers hair. "Please?"

Annabeth sighed. "Your father wants to tell you. Don't you, Percy?"

"Sure," Percy said, turning away from the TV and gesturing for Chase to sit on his knee. "It's a long story though, are you sure you won't fall asleep?"

This last question was directed at the small blonde toddler that was now perched comfortably on his fathers lap.

Chase looked scornful. "Of course! I'm three! Three year olds can do anything!"

"Well, not everything," Percy said.

"Percy."

"Right, sorry."

Chase looked up at him with big, pleading eyes. Percy grinned. His favorite story was Percy's as well.

"So, one day, there was this big mean man at the camp—"

"The camp _I'm _going to?" Chase interrupted.

Percy grinned, ruffling his hair. "When Annabeth and I can bear to let you go."

Chase gurgled laughter as if this, rather than being one of the truest things a parent could say to a child, was a tremendous joke that he, as a _three year old_, would certainly understand.

"Ok, so this Big Mean Man was not supposed to be there. Someone had made a very stupid mistake."

Annabeth, unseen, smirked at this.

Chase was watching, holding onto every word.

"And so one day, your mother and I discovered something very important in regards to getting back Grover—"

"Uncle Grover!" Chase yelled, excited at, despite the fact that he had done so many times before, understood a reference.

"Yes, your mother and I were rescuing your uncle," Percy agreed. "Now, when it came to it, we told the Big Mean Man—"

"That's stupid!"

Annabeth's eyes didn't move from her book. "He's picked up that language from you."

"It's only _stupid_—"

"Yeah but that's like the f-bomb in the three-year-old world."

"I said stupid when I was three."

"It shows."

"THE STORY PLEASE!" Chase yelled.

The parents looked wonderingly at their child.

"…Please?"

Percy laughed. "Sure thing."

Annabeth moved over, nostalgic and regretting her decision to send Chase over to Percy.

"I'll help out as well," she told them.

"Yay!" Chase squealed.

"And so, at this point, your father and I were at a loss for what to do."

Chase looked confused.

Annabeth smiled. "We didn't know what to do."

Chase very visibly relaxed.

"But we went up to the Big Bad—"

"No, no, Big _Mean _Man," Chase said, looking a little cross that his mother was getting the terminology wrong.

"Right, sorry. We went up to the Big _Mean _Man and told him what we knew, and how _we _could help him. Can you guess what he did next?"

"Chop his head off!" Chase roared, ignoring the question entirely.

Percy looked amused. "This is what you get from cartoon's these days."

Annabeth winced. "I think I'm going to be introducing him to the fine art of Thomas the Tank Engine soon."

"Top plan."

"Anyway," Annabeth continued. "He told someone _else _to go and free him, despite the fact that we knew where he was!"

Chase gasped. It was so adorably cute Annabeth was surprised she didn't melt into the floor.

"And then I told him to chase a doughnut," Percy finished, grinning.

And at that, Chase collapsed into laughter, despite not knowing why it would be funny, or even allowing himself the brief moment to understand if he _had _understood.

Percy and Annabeth grinned, their sons laughter infectious.

_A month later Percy and Annabeth made the public statement that they were expecting their second child. This time, Annabeth begged for a girl. A little girl with an older brother to protect her. _

_Bianca was born later that year, on the fourth of December, a black haired, grey eyed girl with a tight grip around her parents fingers and a quick mind._

_Five years later, it was time for her first day at school._

Bianca pulled at her collar. She looked worryingly into the mirror. Her hair was shiny and plaited down the sides of her head, and a polka-dot red bow decorated the end. She was wearing a tight collared dress, one of her least favourites, mainly because after this, her brother had told her she was going to wear it all day.

She didn't mind her shiny new shoes, though, nor her fresh white socks.

Bianca bit her lip and climbed down carefully from the stool she had to stand on to look into the mirror. There was a knock on the door, and Chase walked into the room.

"Are you ready yet? Dad says he'll buy us a doughnut if we leave in the next five minutes."

Bianca nodded, smiling, happy now that she had something worth smiling about.

Annabeth walked into the room behind Chase. Her hair was up in a bun, and the first of her faint wrinkles coloured her face. She was holding Bianca's bag. Bianca personally thought that her mother was the most beautiful person in the world, well, second most, because she knew Aunty Piper, and anybody who knew her would have agreed.

Annabeth blinked away tears. She handed Bianca her bag. "You ready?"

Bianca bit her lip, but she put on a brave front. "Yes, just a little worried."

Annabeth smiled sadly, told Chase to find Percy, and knelt by her daughter. "You're worried, right?"

Bianca nodded slowly.

"I'll tell you a secret," Annabeth said. "I worry a lot as well. And sometimes it's a good thing, to worry, but sometimes worrying ruins things. So I want you to promise me that you'll be brave, and make at least one friend today. Ok?"

Bianca nodded slowly. She knew her mother didn't mean to hurt her feelings, but she couldn't help the tears that trailed down her face. Annabeth winced, she knew she should have attempted this with more tact.

"Hey baby," Annabeth said. "Its ok." She wiped away the tears. "You'll be home tonight, ok? And I'll make you your favourite dinner."

Bianca didn't smile, just nodded. "Okay Mommy."

Annabeth walked Bianca, holding her hand, squeezing it comfortably every once in a while, to the front door, where Percy was already dressed, a suit for work, and Chase had his coat on, and an umbrella hanging from his hand.

Annabeth kissed Chase on the head, and then Bianca, and then Percy.

Percy lead them away, and fifteen minutes later, Annabeth walked out as well, heading to work, worrying, as every mother did, about her children, and whether or not they'd cry or laugh when she saw them that evening.

_Bianca made friends, not many, she never considered herself popular, she never had a boyfriend, and she spent most weekends making a trip to the second hand bookstore. Chase grew, and soon he was 11, and, to Percy and Annabeth's horror, had been attacked, while at school, by a hellhound._

_Percy tried not to feel nostalgic when he was expelled._

_(Chase never understood why his parents didn't yell at him)_

_He was taken to the camp that weekend._

Percy and Annabeth sat in the front, and Chase sat in the back with his sister. Eight years old and already reading beyond him, she was in a sort of superior phase, one that Chase wished would hurry up and leave.

"Greek gods," Chase repeated, for the fiftieth time. "I still can't believe it."

"You will soon," Annabeth promised. "It's hard not to meet Chiron and still be skeptic."

"And Mr. D," Percy said.

"Don't mistake him for a human," Annabeth told him. "He won't thank you for that."

"Dionysus," Chase said, repeating that for roughly his twentieth. "The god of Wine."

"He turned sailors into dolphins, you know," Bianca piped. "And actually _invented _wine. He was the son of Zeus."

Chase tried to ignore his sister, the encyclopedia.

"Will Uncle Grover be there?" He asked, immediately connecting the redhead to his mother and fathers admittance that he was, in fact, a satyr, half man, half goat.

"No," Percy said. "Well, maybe. He is Lord of the Wild. He might be a bit busy."

"Percy, do not sass our son."

"But I'm so good at it."

"Regardless."

"Yes, dearest."

The children were used to this, small banter between their parents. It didn't make it any less annoying when Chase's life had just been turned on its head and he wanted information.

Percy drummed his fingers on the steering wheel. "Nearly there. Nearly home."

_Bianca, to the relief of her parents, was never attacked, yet went to camp for her first time when she was 12._

_Bianca and Chase went on quests._

_Bianca and Chase got injured by monsters, monsters that may have known there parents._

_Bianca and Chase nearly died._

_Chase grew up to be handsome, marrying his mortal high-school, clear-sighted girlfriend._

_Bianca grew up to be beautiful, marrying Jason and Piper's son._

_Annabeth and Percy grew old, as they'd always wanted to do._

_Monsters began to leave them alone. Gods interfered less in their affairs_. _They hand grandchildren, they had friends, that had family, they had happiness._

_They arrived in Elysium, there only wish, like a couple from the Greek History they had so often disregarded as myths, who had begged the gods for nothing more than to die at the same time, so as one should not have to live without the other._

_Percy and Annabeth finally found peace._

**-THE END-**


End file.
